Anny Ondra
Encyclopedia
Anny Ondra was a Czech
film actress. She was born Anna Sophie Ondráková in Tarnów
, Galicia, Austria–Hungary, now Poland
, and died in Hollenstedt
near Harburg
, Germany
.
. She acted in Czech
, Austria
n and German
comedies in the 1920s, and in some British dramas, most notably in Alfred Hitchcock
's The Manxman
and Blackmail
(both 1929).
However, when Blackmail was remade with sound
, Ondra's thick accent was considered unacceptable, so her dialogue was recorded by actress Joan Barry. Ondra made some forty more films in the sound era before retiring in the late-1930s.
She formed a production company, Ondra-Lamac-Films, with her first husband, director Karel Lamač. Lamac directed her in several silent films, acted with her in films directed by other filmmakers, and continued to work together after their divorce.
On July 6, 1933, she married the boxer Max Schmeling
, with whom she appeared in the film Knock-out (1935). Their marriage was a happy one, although childless. (Ondra reportedly had a miscarriage after a car accident.) They were married until her death in 1987.
Ondra was portrayed by Britt Ekland
in the television movie Ring of Passion (1978), where the character was named "Amy Ondra Schmeling". She was also portrayed by Peta Wilson
in another television movie Joe and Max (2002).
Ondra was buried in the Saint Andreas Friedhof cemetery in Hollenstedt, Germany. Her husband Schmeling died in 2005 and was buried next to her.
Czech people
Czechs, or Czech people are a western Slavic people of Central Europe, living predominantly in the Czech Republic. Small populations of Czechs also live in Slovakia, Austria, the United States, the United Kingdom, Chile, Argentina, Canada, Germany, Russia and other countries...
film actress. She was born Anna Sophie Ondráková in Tarnów
Tarnów
Tarnów is a city in southeastern Poland with 115,341 inhabitants as of June 2009. The city has been situated in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship since 1999, but from 1975 to 1998 it was the capital of the Tarnów Voivodeship. It is a major rail junction, located on the strategic east-west connection...
, Galicia, Austria–Hungary, now Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, and died in Hollenstedt
Hollenstedt
Hollenstedt is a municipality in the district of Harburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approx. 25 km southwest of Hamburg, and 12 km south of Buxtehude....
near Harburg
Harburg
Harburg is a district in Lower Saxony, Germany. It takes its name from the town of Harburg upon Elbe, which used to be the capital of the district but is now part of Hamburg...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
Life
The daughter of an Austro-Hungarian officer, she spent her childhood in PraguePrague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
. She acted in Czech
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n and German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
comedies in the 1920s, and in some British dramas, most notably in Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...
's The Manxman
The Manxman
The Manxman is a silent film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Based on an 1896 romantic novel The Manxman by Hall Caine, the director began work on the film just two weeks after the birth of his daughter, Patricia Hitchcock...
and Blackmail
Blackmail (1929 film)
Blackmail is a 1929 British thriller drama film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Anny Ondra, John Longden, and Cyril Ritchard, and featuring Donald Calthrop, Sara Allgood and Charles Paton. The film is based on the play Blackmail by Charles Bennett, as adapted by Hitchcock, with dialogue by...
(both 1929).
However, when Blackmail was remade with sound
Sound film
A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades would pass before sound motion pictures were made commercially...
, Ondra's thick accent was considered unacceptable, so her dialogue was recorded by actress Joan Barry. Ondra made some forty more films in the sound era before retiring in the late-1930s.
She formed a production company, Ondra-Lamac-Films, with her first husband, director Karel Lamač. Lamac directed her in several silent films, acted with her in films directed by other filmmakers, and continued to work together after their divorce.
On July 6, 1933, she married the boxer Max Schmeling
Max Schmeling
Maximillian Adolph Otto Siegfried Schmeling was a German boxer who was heavyweight champion of the world between 1930 and 1932. His two fights with Joe Louis in the late 1930s transcended boxing, and became worldwide social events because of their national associations...
, with whom she appeared in the film Knock-out (1935). Their marriage was a happy one, although childless. (Ondra reportedly had a miscarriage after a car accident.) They were married until her death in 1987.
Ondra was portrayed by Britt Ekland
Britt Ekland
Britt-Marie Ekland is a Swedish actress and singer, and a long time resident of the United Kingdom. She is best known for her roles as a Bond girl in The Man with the Golden Gun, and in the British cult horror film The Wicker Man, as well as her marriage to actor Peter Sellers, and her...
in the television movie Ring of Passion (1978), where the character was named "Amy Ondra Schmeling". She was also portrayed by Peta Wilson
Peta Wilson
Peta Gia Wilson is an Australian actress and model. She is best known as Nikita in the television series La Femme Nikita.-Early life:...
in another television movie Joe and Max (2002).
Ondra was buried in the Saint Andreas Friedhof cemetery in Hollenstedt, Germany. Her husband Schmeling died in 2005 and was buried next to her.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1920 | Gilly zum ersten Mal in Prag (Gilly poprvé v Praze) | ||
| 1922 | Zigeunerliebe | ||
| 1922 | Führe uns nicht in Versuchung | ||
| 1926 | Trude, die Sechzehnjährige | ||
| 1926 | Die Pratermizzi | ||
| 1928 | Evas Töchter - Das Paradies von heute | ||
| 1928 | Der erste Kuß | ||
| 1929 | Der Mann von der Insel Man (The Manxman) | ||
| 1929 | Erpressung (Blackmail) | ||
| 1929 | Sündig und süß | ||
| 1929 | Die Kaviarprinzessin | ||
| 1930 | Die vom Rummelplatz | ||
| 1930 | Eine Freundin, so goldig wie Du | ||
| 1932 | Kiki | ||
| 1933 | Fräulein Hoffmanns Erzählungen | ||
| 1933 | Das verliebte Hotel | ||
| 1934 | Polenblut (i.e. Polish Blood) | Helena Zaremba | |
| 1934 | Klein Dorrit | ||
| 1935 | Knock-out | Marianne Plümke | together with her husband Max Schmeling Max Schmeling Maximillian Adolph Otto Siegfried Schmeling was a German boxer who was heavyweight champion of the world between 1930 and 1932. His two fights with Joe Louis in the late 1930s transcended boxing, and became worldwide social events because of their national associations... |
| 1935 | Großreinemachen | ||
| 1935 | Der junge Graf | ||
| 1936 | Donogoo Tonka | ||
| 1936 | Flitterwochen | ||
| 1937 | Vor Liebe wird gewarnt | ||
| 1937 | Der Unwiderstehliche | ||
| 1938 | Narren im Schnee | ||
| 1941 | Der Gasmann | Erika Knittel | together with Heinz Rühmann Heinz Rühmann Heinrich Wilhelm "Heinz" Rühmann was a popular German film actor.-Life and work:Rühmann was born in Essen, Westphalia. His role in the 1930 movie Die Drei von der Tankstelle led him to film stardom. He remained highly popular as a comedic actor throughout the 1930s and early 1940s... |
| 1942 | Himmel, wir erben ein Schloß | ||
| 1951 | Schön muß man sein | ||
| 1957 | Die Zürcher Verlobung |